


cataclysmic

by woahrebecca



Category: RWBY
Genre: Character Study, F/F, F/M, Past Relationship(s), Relationship Study, very brief descriptions of blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-24
Updated: 2016-07-24
Packaged: 2018-07-26 11:12:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,223
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7572004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/woahrebecca/pseuds/woahrebecca
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cinder Fall is a star on the brink of going supernova, burning through the people around her like they’re fuel, but she is destined to implode.</p>
            </blockquote>





	cataclysmic

Emerald was first. Emerald was the hydrogen fuel Cinder burned her way through without thinking.

Emerald was the easiest - not that that was a bad thing, not at all - but she was the easiest as she was so easy to manipulate. When Cinder first noticed the look in Emerald’s eyes when her gaze lingered on her for just a moment too long, a wistful look in her eyes, she smiled at the younger woman. This was going to be fun.

There was a few weeks of a game of cat and mouse, Cinder obviously wasn’t about to go after Emerald herself. Instead, she would crook a finger and call Emerald to her, her eyes smouldering, or when she was explaining the plan she was stand just too close, her breath on Emerald’s skin yet she never touched. She was merely holding bait and waiting for Emerald to bite, and bite she did.

Cinder truly enjoyed this, enjoyed the game of it, enjoyed the way she could incite a reaction from Emerald just with a look or as her breath passed over her skin. Emerald, on the other hand, was visibly torn between wanting to act on what Cinder was baiting her for, whilst also being scared of her superior, a constant battle in her head about what to do and when to do it.

She took the bait on their way to the home to Marcus Black and his son.

It was around the time a group of Beowolves moved along the path the pair were taking in the woods and Cinder really wasn’t in the mood for a fight right now, let alone one they were outnumbered in. Instead, she grabbed Emerald by the wrist and retreated a few metres into the tree line before pushing her against a tree. The hand that was once around Emerald’s wrist was now against Cinder’s own mouth, making a “shhh” motion, as her other arm was pushed against Emerald’s throat, not hard enough to impede her breathing but hard enough to hold her there. It took a few minutes of tense silence for the slightly growling group of Beowolves to make their way down the small dirt path, and until Cinder was confident they had gone far enough away for them to make their way back to the path.

As she dropped her arm from it’s hold across Emerald’s neck, Emerald reached forward and kissed Cinder.

Cinder almost rolled her eyes, it took her long enough.

Emerald kissed Cinder like her life depended on it, and Cinder kissed Emerald back for no other reason than because she was bored, and because she could.

Emerald was someone Cinder could manipulate, someone Cinder could taint. Emerald was someone Cinder could ruin.

Obviously Emerald was not pure and she was not wholly good, no matter how hard she would try at times. She had done her share of crimes, had done her fair share of shady jobs and people to stay alive on the streets. But Cinder? Cinder was the opposite of Emerald in the way she was already bad and had accepted that, sometimes saw the water as she showered as crimson blood pouring over her body. Emerald was someone Cinder was going to change.

Cinder knew the words Emerald wanted to here, knew exactly how to look to make Emerald give up her argument and do as Cinder asked, even if it went against her own personal morals. Emerald looked at Cinder like she was the sole star in the night star, and Cinder ate up the adoration, burning just a little bit brighter.

For her, Emerald came back with blood on her hands. For her, Emerald killed at a moment’s notice, instead of only when her life truly depended on it.

For her, Emerald lost herself.

As Emerald lost more and more of herself becoming the woman she thought Cinder wanted her to be, Cinder became more and more bored. As Emerald wore herself out for Cinder, Cinder decided she was satisfied with what she had gotten out of Emerald.

And Emerald was left, tired and exhausted and out of fuel, whilst Cinder burned on.

* * *

Mercury was second. Mercury was the helium fuel that Cinder burned her way through next.

She had been intrigued by Mercury when she first saw him; bloody bandages around his knees, his father dead on the ground near him and his burning house behind him. Whereas Emerald was someone who needed a lot of work to get to the level Cinder wanted, Mercury was already there he just needed a little push in the right direction.

One that Cinder was all too happy to give.

It was three days after Cinder decided she was done with Emerald, and Emerald was in her room and Mercury was practicing against the dummy Emerald had stolen a month back. His legs kicking blank rounds into the woolen chest of the figure as he spun around, flipping on the ground as he feet flew in a flurry of blows that would easily down another human. Cinder merely leant against the doorway, watching him as he danced the deadly dance that was second nature to him.

And Mercury noticed, of course he did. He heard the quick tap of her heels hitting the solid floor and the ever so quiet creak of the doorframe as her weight rested upon it. One of the perks of being the son of an assassin, he muses bitterly.

“Like what you see?” his voice rung out through the silence, his arms crossed over his chest as he moved to lean casually against the dummy.

And this, this is what Cinder liked about Mercury. Mercury was cocky, he knew his strengths and was confident in his own abilities, and his ability to get what he wanted, he was reckless and walking a thin line between bad and worse.

Cinder let out a short laugh, “What I’ve seen is satisfactory at best,” and she raised an eyebrow at Mercury, the unspoken challenge hanging in the air and she hoped he would take it.

He hummed to himself for a moment, faking deep thought “Oh is that so? How about we spar then, if I’m only “satisfactory at best” then surely you’ll win, and surely I’ll learn something.”

Cinder pulled her hair back into a short ponytail and kicked her heels to the side, “I do hope you’re ready for this.”

He was, and while Cinder had been lying when she said he was satisfactory at best, he still wasn’t good enough to beat her. Her hands would shoot up to block his feet, before pushing him off and that was their stalemate for the first two minutes, until she shoved him back just enough and he stumbled and she took the chance with her swords. She dived towards him, catching him off balance and he hit the ground and Cinder soon followed, her sword pushing lightly against his neck.

“I think it’s safe to say I won?”

In a second, Mercury was moving and had swapped their positions, Cinder’s back was pressed against the cool floor as Mercury pinned her down; her sword faltered slightly as she held it up.

“Would you say that?” he teased, an odd look behind his eyes that caused Cinder’s heart to beat faster than it had during their fight.

She looked at Mercury for a second before smirking, calling on her semblance and burning where he was holding her down and he hissed, before he laughed and threw his hands up in surrender.

“Got it. You’re in charge. I can definitely remember that.” there was a flirty tone to his words as he stood up, holding a hand out to pull Cinder up from the floor.

When Mercury kissed Cinder, he kissed her like she was the only person in the world and Cinder thrived off of it.  
Mercury lasted a little longer than Emerald did before he too was burnt out, before Cinder had taken all she could from him. It was amicable at least, no tears shed - the same couldn’t have been said about Emerald before - and they agreed it was just a bit of fun, stress relief, testing reach and flexibility to work off steam.

* * *

 

Roman was third. Roman was the carbon Cinder burned.

Roman was a conflict of professional interest, Cinder didn’t want to actually get along with Roman, she wanted to be able to hate him so she would get more pleasure out of getting him to do dirty work for her that she knew he was overqualified for. Roman Torchwick, however, had a different plan, and he was much more charming than Cinder had expected.

Everytime she tried to play him, he played her right back as though this was merely a simple game of chess and Cinder revelled in this. She revelled in the challenge just as much as she revelled in the way he wanted her just as much as she wanted him. She didn’t want him to get to her like he did, his honeyed words that rolled off his tongue as though he’d been saying them since he was born.

Cinder hated Roman Torchwick, and she hated how much she didn’t actually hate him.

Roman was just the right side of sociopathic for Cinder. Roman was just the right amount of morally grey, he was bad enough to kill and steal if Cinder needed, yet not bad enough that she had to watch her back in fear of his betrayal. Roman was good and bad and Cinder loved it.

They were arguing one night - they argued a lot, Roman always wanted to know more than Cinder wanted him too - over something insignificant. Roman had tried again to ask what Cinder’s endgame plan was, tried to ask what he was really doing here - none of them knew her endgame, she did though and that’s all that mattered - and a part inside Cinder snapped.

She turned around on her heel to face Roman, fire fueled by the tension burned behind her eyes. “You really want to know what I want from you?” her voice deceptively calm.

He merely nodded at her in reply, gestured with his now slightly shaking hand for her to continue.

Cinder took three steps forward towards Roman, grabbed his coat collar and kissed him.

Cinder Fall was not one for rash decisions, she was never one to act on something as fleeting as attraction - she would bait them, make a game out of it where they came to her instead of the other way around. Cinder would plan her steps well in advance, and then she would have backup plans for every possible thing that could happen. Cinder Fall planned meticulously and never went after others. Yet, here she was, making an impromptu choice to kiss the man in front of her, breaking two of the rules she followed her whole life. This, in hindsight, is the first sign of her impending implosion. This, in hindsight, was the start of her impending implosion.

Roman breathed out a half-sigh, half-laugh against her lips. “Well, I can’t say I blame you.”

Roman’s hand made it’s way into her hair where it cascaded down her back like ashes, and all she could say in reply to his characteristic witty comment was to shush him as she kissed him again because they were both adults and it was late and frankly, they can do as they wish.

She was with Roman longer than Emerald and Mercury combined, they worked well together and if she could’ve considered him an equal, she would’ve. Emerald, Mercury and Neo never mentioned the cigar ash smudged on her skin, or the slightly burnt fabric on his collar but she had no doubts that the three of them knew. Her suspicion they all knew was proven when she saw Emerald glaring daggers at Roman when he spoke to Cinder in a hushed voice, and the entertained smirk on Mercury's lips when he caught Cinder dragging Roman off one night.

It was dysfunctional, and it worked well enough until, for no fault of their own, it burned out.

* * *

 

Neo was fourth. Neo was the neon Cinder burned through briefly, in a blink and you’ll miss it instance.

Neo fascinated Cinder, and if Roman walked the line of sociopathic then Neo had been the one to draw the line and take three steps ahead of it. Neo had crossed that line, no doubt about it, and never looked back. Her smile was so innocent, so sickly sweet that she could get anyone to let their guard down around her before the blade in her parasol made their way into their flesh and she would smile the way one would assume a shark would smile as it devoured its prey.

Neo was dangerous, Neo was not as trustworthy as Roman. Whereas Cinder never had to watch her back around Roman, the same could not have been said for Neo. Cinder kept a careful watch over the smaller woman, making sure when they were gathered that she could always see Neo - when she learnt of her semblance it unsettled her - in front of her. That lasted for long enough without an incident that Cinder started to watch her back less, that and the fact she was much busier than she was before, she didn’t have time to watch Neo’s every movement and she’d like to see Neo try and win against her in a fight anyway.

Cinder wanted to learn from Neo, she wanted to learn how to make people feel at ease, how to make people feel like they could trust her implicitly. Neo had looks that helped, she was smaller and petite and her reluctance to speak made her seem so innocent, clad in white and pink; pure, clean colours. Cinder had looks that helped, but not in the same way, while Neo would be seen as innocent, Cinder went for sultry, she flirted her way into getting people to let their guards down and tell her what she needed to know, all she needed was a bat of her eyelashes and men would be flustered.

Neo was the accident Cinder made. Neo was the difference that made Cinder realise that something in her was wrong, yet she didn’t realise how close to her own implosion she was.

They were just talking - well, Cinder spoke, Neo signed - as Cinder asked Neo for tips, for guidance on how to be more innocent seeming, on how to have people innately trust her when suddenly Cinder had an urge in her chest that she hadn’t had since Roman.

Cinder didn’t even realise she was kissing Neo until her lips were already pressed against hers. And for the briefest moment, Cinder pulled away and froze.

Neo looked at her confused, as Cinder just sat there, millions of thoughts running through her head, her thoughts only broken by Neo snapping her fingers in front of Cinder’s face.

“This never happened. Do you understand me?”

Neo nodded and Cinder left the room, not meeting her multicolored eyes.

* * *

 

Adam was fifth. Adam was last. Adam was the oxygen Cinder took in her lungs and burned her way through, Adam was the fuel she needed.

Adam was dangerous, that much was clear when Cinder met him. Adam was dangerous and deadly and would kill her if he got the chance and that shook her to her core. But Adam and her were on the same side, she had gotten him and the White Fang on her side and he wouldn’t hurt her unless the two forces had split apart in a less than amicable way, which had yet to happen.

Really, they had a lot in common. They both wanted power - Cinder for herself, and Adam for himself and the faunus - and they both had blood on their hands, so much blood, she wouldn’t have been shocked to see Adam’s hands stained vaguely red underneath his gloves, like the way she sometimes expected her own to be when she looked at them at night.

And what happened was inevitable. Cinder looked just too similar to Blake - tall, black hair, yellow eyes - for Adam to not think of her like that, and Cinder was burning herself out, she needed more fuel, someone else to help keep her going.

Cinder was, begrudgingly, spending time with the White Fang, to prove to them that her and her plan could be trusted, and that it would be in all their best interests to work together and convincing those who opposed the idea of working with humans to accept their plan.

Adam called her into his tent one late afternoon - sun just starting to set over the horizon making it seem like the sky was burning - under the pretense of planning the next few day’s attacks. Only that never happened, that was never going to happen as the moment she stepped towards him and the tent flaps shut, he was kissing her.

Cinder wasn’t going to complain, she put her arms around his neck as he held her waist. He kissed her with every fibre of his being - at first, he was thinking it was Blake, but then he stopped thinking that, he knew it wasn’t her and he didn’t mind that he was kissing someone who wasn’t Blake - and she breathed him in, oxygen she didn’t know she needed filling her lungs and she was burning again, burning brighter than she had before.

They worked together on attacks while Cinder was still with the White Fang. She’d follow him where he would go and she would fight by his side, shooting arrows over his shoulder at the enemies - Grimm mostly, sometimes vigilantes trying to take out the White Fang, sometimes guards on Dust shipments they hijacked.

By the end of the days where they fought, his hands would be slick with blood, yet he’d grab either side of her face and kiss her, the blood on her skin from his hands mixing with the dirt, grime and sweat from the fights and Cinder hadn’t felt this alive in so long.

Inevitably, it had to end. The plan was truly in motion now and neither of them could have any distractions they both decided, but maybe after. Maybe after this was done, maybe after the dust settles and if they both made it out alive. Or maybe not, that’s the type of people they were.

* * *

 

Cinder was so tired, she was exhausted mentally and physically, planning and executing all these machinations during the Vytal Festival whilst battling with half the Fall Maiden powers in her head had worn her out.

If she had the other half, then maybe the constant static noise in her head would stop.

If she had all the power, maybe she’d stop feeling as though she was going to collapse inwards.

If she was the Fall Maiden, maybe she wouldn’t feel like she was on the verge of exploding.

Sadly, she was wrong. For in the few moments she had the full Maiden powers, everything got worse. She was both burning and cold at the same time, her mind screaming yet also eerily silent as the ashes blew away from her.

Then Ruby screamed.

Cinder imploded on herself as she froze on the tower.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I wish I could say I was shocked I wrote this. I'm not. This is the most me thing I've ever written.
> 
> I care too much about these dumb villains ESPECIALLY Cinder Fall I love her too much I love the villains too much and I think about the villains relationships all the time.
> 
> Anyway I go back to uni tomorrow and it's 11pm and I just finished writing this whole fic
> 
> I've probably got some of my lil supernova science references wrong but Whatever I tried considering I haven't studied them in a while.
> 
> ((also let's play: spot the Mass Effect reference))


End file.
